Trap nest for hens



Aug. 22, 1933. O STROHSCHNEIDER 1,923,850

TRAP NEST FOR HENS Filed April 4, 1951 Jzwembr:

(/42 1mm Mr Patented Aug. 22, 1933 UNIT ED STATES PATENT OFFICEApplication April 4, 1931, Serial No. 527,734, and in Austria February13, 1930 4 Claims.

For determining the laying capacity of hens, so-called trap. nests havebeen employed, that is box-like nests with hinged doors, usually onlyoscillatable in inward direction, which are either supported in inclinedposition, the support being removed by a, hen entering the nest so thatthe door drops and confines the hen in the nest, or are made in'twoparts, the lower part being swung upwards and adapted to drop when a henenters a nest. The hens which are each provided with a mark, must befreed from the nest and, when liberating the hen, this mark can be notedand in this manner the laying capacity of each hen determined.

Trap nests are also known with hinged doors, which are only oscillatableoutwards of the free locking position and in which the door ismaintained in locked condition by an automatic locking device adapted tobe actuated on being touched.

The present invention relates to improvements in the latter type of trapnests.

An embodiment of the invention is illustrated by way of example in theaccompanying draw ing, in which:

Fig. -1 shows the trap nest in front elevation with a portion of thedoor removed.

Fig. 2 is a vertical cross section on line 2-2 of Fig. 1, showing thefront portion of the nest.

Fig. 3 shows the locking device in inoperative position.

On the front wall R of the nest, provided with an aperture, a door T issuspended in the aperture in the wall R by means of an iron of the doorand having two arms U downwardly bent at right angles, extending one oneach side half way down the side of the door T. In each of the arms U ahole is provided directly below the band S through which a rod D restingin horizontal position in holes in the nest extends. The lower ends ofthe arms U are oscillatably connected to the sides of the door T bymeans of screws V. Thus, the door can oscillate around the screws V andthe frame can oscillate on the rod D. On each side of the lower end ofthe door T pins K project laterally, and near the upper end of the frontwall R of the nest downwardly extending hooks G are provided one on eachside. For setting the nest, the door is swung inwards on the frame Saround the rod D and the lower end of the door oscillated around thescrews V so that the pins K engage in the hooks G, so that the doorassumes the position shown in dotted lines band frame S extending alongthe upper edge in Fig. 2. When a hen enters the nest, it must brushagainst the end of the door and disen gage the pins. K from the hooks G,so that the door returns into its initial or closed position. In orderto prevent the door from swinging, beyond its vertical position, stops Jare provided on the. upper end of the door, which come into contact withthe inner side of the front wall R o the nest, the lower end of the doorcoming into contact with abutments N arranged on each side of theaperture on the front wall R.

On the lower end of the door T a snap hook H is mounted in a U-shapedsheet metal casing P provided with lateral flaps L, by means of whichthe casing is fixed on the door. This hook H slides over and engages astrap E fixed on the wall of the nest at the lower edge of the aperturewhen the door drops into its closing position. Thus the door isautomatically locked in this closed position. For disengaging the snaphook H it is only necessary to depress same. The upper edge of thecasing P is bent over to form a hook O, in which the end of the snaphook H extending into the nest can be engaged by depressing the end ofthe hook H, 90 projecting from the casing, so as to render the snap hookinoperative.

The snap hook H is locked in the position shown in Fig. 2 after the henhas entered the nest. If it is desired, after inspection, to allow thehen to leave the nest, the snap hook must be rendered inoperative. Forthis purpose the wire on which the snap hook is oscillatably mounted isbent to form a rectangular frame B which generally hangsdownwards. If,before closing the nest after inspection, this frame is however raisedso that it rests on the strap when the door is closed, it supports thesnap hook H as shown in Fig. 3 so that it cannot engage the strap E.When the hen leaves the nest, it raises the door T and allows it to dropinto its hanging position so that the snap hook can engage the strap Ewhen the door again closes thereby locking the door and the nest withthe egg laid by the hen which has just left the nest. The number of thehen can be noted during the inspection and marked on the door of thenest.

In order to release the hen from the nest, after the engagement of thesnap hook with the i strap E, it is merely necessary to press the outerend of the snap hook in downward direction and oscillate the door aroundthe rod D.

What I claim is:

1. A trap nest for hens, comprising in com- 51 1 bination with the frontwall of the nest having an aperture, a door in said aperture to closethe nest, a frame extending along the upper edge and having two armsextending half way down the corresponding side of said door, and havingholes at the upper end, screws hingedly connecting the lower ends ofsaid arms to the sides of said door, a horizontal rod supported in saidfront wall extending across said aperture and through the holes in saidarms adapted to allow the oscillation of said frame, stops on the innerside of the upper end of said door adapted to bear against the innerside of the upper portion of said wall when said door is in closedposition, two abutments on the inner side of said front wall extendinginto the aperture thereof adapted to limit the oscillation of said dooraround said screws when said door is in closed position, two pinsextending laterally one from each side of the lower end of said door,and hooks on the outer side of said front wall one on each side of theaperture thereof adapted on said door being oscillated outwards aroundsaid screws and swung into the nest with said frame to engage said pinsand hold said door in the inclined position.

2. A trap nest as specified in claim 1, comprising in combination withthe front wall and the door, a casing mounted on the lower end of thesaid door, a snap lock oscillatably mounted in said casing, and a strapon said front wall extending beyond the lower edge of said apertureadapted on the closing of said door to engage said hook and lock saiddoor in closed position.

3. A trap nest as specified in claim 1, comprising in combination withthe front wall and the door, a casing mounted on the lower end of saiddoor, a snap lock oscillatably mounted in said casing, a strap on saidfront wall extending beyond the lower edge of said aperture adapted onthe closing of said door to engage said hook and lock said door inclosed position, and a catch hook in said casing adapted to lock saidsnap hook in inoperative position.

4. A trap nest as specified in claim 1, comprising in combination withthe front wall and the door, a casing mounted on the lower end of saiddoor, a snap lock oscillatably mounted in said casing, a strap on saidfront wall extending beyond the lower edge of said aperture adapted onthe closing of said door to engage said hook and lock said door inclosed position, and a rectangular element serving as pivot for saidsnap hook adapted to he slipped over said strap and prevent theengagement of said hook.

OTTO STROHSCHNEIDER.

